Let's continue on the paradoxical ('we're loving them to death') thread from the last post: How ridiculously overcrowded some Nat'l Parks have become.......
Photo: Brian Van Der Brug, TNS
........And the ugly abuse of nature that some witless idiots perpetrate:
They have since apologized, but should really have had the brains to never do what they did in the first place.
John Muir would be thunderstruck.
All the above VS:
The fact that there is still a whole lot of empty space out there, where, as the saying (borrowed from the movie 'Alien') goes: 'no one can hear you scream'. At least no one human.
How tough is this land to travel over?
I've tried to climb up, and into places like the above, and spent several hours getting... a few hundred feet.
If i scream as loud as i can in the desert maybe some birds, lizards, jackrabbits, rats and mice, coyotes and rattlesnakes will wonder what boisterous vociferous beast has wandered their way.
All these critters keep low profiles, food (= nutrition/energy) is scarce, so is water. Weather is extreme (both hot and cold) so one and all conserve their energy. They steer clear of each other, and from humans.
I encountered a rattlesnake once in Joshua Tree, walking along a 'sort of crushed naturally' rocky trail. Never heard that rattle before, but once one does, it's immediately recognizable and forever memorable. I turned in the direction of the sound, it took more than a few seconds to spot the snake, it's skin color and texture are a perfect camoflauge.
"OK dude, i am outta here, no need to mess w/ you".
In contrast to Yosemite there are some spots the US Park service and the SP admin. has provided that see very little action:
"Camp retirement" is what i call this one. It's at the east end of Valley of Fire SP about an hour north of Las Vegas, the west end has the most easily accessible petroglyph viewing, it's well traveled.
The east end? Kinda gets ignored.
There was one guy who tried to settle in Joshua Tree - Bill Keys.
He did his best to establish something out here - what 's left behind is some testament to his efforts, he named the mill the 'Wall Street Mill' thinking he would get rich somehow, here. Didn't happen.
"In 1943, in an incident straight out of a western dime novel, a former deputy sheriff named Worth Bagley ambushed Keys just outside Keys' ranch. Bill returned fire and shot Bagley to death. The trial was a mockery of justice, with some powerful cattle ranching interests twisting the results against Keys. Bill was found guilty of murder and sent to jail".
Trees need to be protected, Each and every one. Thanks, NPS.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
After years of writing about various journeys, it's time to switch gears - at 66 YO now my days of road-trippin' are over. Sciatica makes sitting in a car seat torture, walking is difficult and painful, i just can't do what i did before. I accept it all (gracefully, methinks) and will revisit all previous ventures w/ a much more philosophical bent.
I have a huge amount of images, film and digital, plenty to ponder.
There is much to be learned from what i've seen, I've just got to look at it thru a different lense.
One thing i keep thinking about is desert vegetation, how tough it is. Joshua Trees take many decades to grow, saguaro cactus can live well over 100 years. They are all well adapted.
I grew up back east, lived there 'til i was 40 YO (25+ years ago).
Vegetation back there is pretty much homogenous, tall trees most everywhere, no horizon visible. Even if there's a field of low grass, it's bordered by trees, no horizon to be seen.
Out west? Not so.
Sure, you got great redwoods at the coast and it's mountains, but then beyond is the rain shadow to the east, you got desert.
And some *really tough cookies* that survive on next to nothing.
They survive snow just as well as 100 degree heat.
This lack of vegetation of any significant size totally warps one's perception of distance - you can see for many, many miles in any direction, you are in the middle of a very vast space, not in the limited space of a forest.
---------------------------------
I live in a big apt. complex, 120+ units, and what i see passing by only a dozen or so is interesting, says a lot about the tenant inside.
One interesting thing is... the welcome mat at the front door. My favorite has 'hola' and 'adios' separated by a diagonal line - the 'hola' is upright walking in, the 'adios' is at 180 degrees, oriented correctly when one leaves.
I've seen another version, a thousand years old in Valley of Fire SP.
I'd like to put this one at my front door.
The rough translation would be 'the people are here'.
----------------------------------------------------
A few links really worth your time:
Have no doubt, i will be back :-)
